"I was the lion…who forced you to join with Aravis. I was the cat who comforted you among the houses of the dead. I was the lion who drove the jackals from you while you slept. I was the lion who gave the Horses the new strength of fear for the last mile so that you should reach King Lune in time. And I was the lion you do not remember who pushed the boat in which you lay, a child near death, so that it came to shore where a man sat, wakeful at midnight, to receive you."

Yes, I do agree that this particular quotation from HHB is one of my most favourite bits. That in Narnia, at least, that there is a rhyme and reason for whatever happened to me. Some other bits I've enjoyed immensely, in HHB, at any rate, is King Lune's description of what it means to be a king, ie a leader. And I suspect this particular message, whether it is seen as Christian or not, is re-iterated elsewhere in the series.

"...to be first in every desperate attack and last in every desperate retreat, and when there is hunger in the land (as must be every now and then in bad years) to wear finer clothes and laugh louder over a scantier meal than any man in your land"

Christian leadership isn't really about domination of underlings. God is the leader over all. Or Aslan in Narnia. Not the king thinking he will live forever and can command instant obedience. Or the Tisroc's son's casual cruelty. Leadership is about example, getting others to co-operate in a team, vision, goals and taking the risks oneself. It is a good message to carry when put in charge of others for any reason. In various other ways in the Narnia series we see how the villains behave to others and how the good guys - Prince Caspian, himself, for instance - behave towards others.

While I've seen that this can be somewhat controversial among Narnia fans, one of my favorite "Christian messages" in the Chronicles of Narnia is embodied in the character and journey of Emeth. Aside from the fact that his Calormene-style storytelling is lovely to read when he relates to the reader his encounter with Aslan, it's full of meaning and hope as well.

I don't think that Lewis was saying that you can get into Aslan's Country even if you don't believe in Aslan, but rather you can get into Aslan's Country if you are ready and willing to believe in Aslan when you see his face and sit between his paws. After all, the Dwarfs were "in" Aslan's Country; they just didn't know it. Emeth knew it because he allowed himself to see it; unlike the Dwarfs, he wasn't so self-absorbed that he was blind to the truth. In fact, he was so unconscious of his own personal safety and comfort that he was willing to walk through the stable door in his quest for truth and God.

In some ways, I think everyone has a little bit of Emeth in them. We're all barking up the wrong tree in some way or another. It may be a little thing or a big thing, but we fallen humans certainly haven't got everything right. The important thing through it all is that we continue to seek truth and holiness and be ready to embrace it when we meet it. That seems to be the fundamental difference between the Calormene who had worshiped Tash all his life and the Narnian Dwarfs who refused to be taken in: Emeth sought the light, while the Dwarfs shut their eyes.

Lewis writes that all will find what they seek. It seems that if you earnestly seek truth and goodness, then you will eventually find it.

I think it's the relationship between Lucy and Aslan..the childlike faith in God.

I even want to add that I think the most powerful scene is in VDT, where Lucy reads the spell to make invisible visible, and Aslan is there. It's such a great way of conveying that God is always there, watching us like a guardian.

I was raised in a quite strict Plymouth Brethren household and church, which seemed to focus more on hell than upon heaven. My imagining of heaven was a bit "thin," I guess you could say, partly as a result. The Last Battle provided me with the first imagining of heaven that sounded at all appealing.

I even want to add that I think the most powerful scene is in VDT, where Lucy reads the spell to make invisible visible, and Aslan is there. It's such a great way of conveying that God is always there, watching us like a guardian.

I love the representation of childlike faith found in Lucy as well. That scene where Lucy is reading the book of spells and Aslan becomes visible is one of my favorites!

That also makes me think of another favorite message of mine from Chronicles of Narnia... the providence of Aslan made visible to Shasta during their conversation on the misty mountaintop. I get chills every time I read that scene, and wonder what the conversation would be like if God were telling me my own story.

WikkedPerson wrote:I was raised in a quite strict Plymouth Brethren household and church, which seemed to focus more on hell than upon heaven. My imagining of heaven was a bit "thin," I guess you could say, partly as a result. The Last Battle provided me with the first imagining of heaven that sounded at all appealing.

Wow, it's so neat that reading those last chapters of LB helped awaken your imagination to what heaven might be like! It's very interesting and heartening to think of children encountering certain aspects of God and theology for the first time through Narnia. Welcome to NarniaWeb, by the way.